Potts Print (UK) has installed its third B2 Speedmaster giving its a litho line up of three half-sheet Heidelbergs and two B1 Rolands in its Cramlington factory.
The new machine is a six-colour plus coater XL75 and joins four- and five-colour machines. It is also kitted out to print carton boards as well as with Inpress Control to reduce makeready times.
The new press meets a need for shorter production runs. “That’s where we had been struggling,” says managing director Shaun Johnson. “We had had to put short runs on the Rolands. And we already had a five-colour XL so it made sense. And made it quite an easy decision to buy from Heidelberg.”
The new machine also has extended delivery making its suitable for the additional colours needed for carton work. “And we get the flexibility because it’s a B2 press,” he adds. “We can do the short run packaging on the new press and have the B1s for longer runs. We have a fantastic relationship with Roland.”
The Inpress spectral measurement system has cut makeready to an average of 80 sheets on four-colour work, again emphasising the suitability for shorter runs. “It makes ready in a ridiculously short time,” he says.
Ahead of the investment, the company examined the profile of its work to calculate the ideal format and configuration of the next press. With the acquisition last year of Bakershaw, where the customer profile has been tilted towards the B2 market, the decision became self evident.
Potts subsequently bought Digital XL as its first move into large format digital printing. “It’s something that we needed to be able to offer customers that bit more,” Johnson says. This has taken the company to 160 staff operating 24/6 with a design to fulfilment service offering.
The company is well equipped on the finishing and prepress side. And in the pressroom there are four- and five-colour Roland 700s as well as the two XL75s and a Speedmaster SX74. It provides a lot of firepower that the company is prepared to use. Says Johnson: “Turnover is up. In fact this year is all about growth.”
Potts Print (UK) is looking for growth this year with the investment in the new press following a brace of acquisitions at the end of last year.
